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[VIDEOS/PICTURES] Is Shaheen Shah Afridi the best fast-bowler in the world right now?

SSA is struggling for rhythm and goes on the defensive too quickly. I dread it when he comes round the wicket because bar the slower ball, it has no thought or planning behind it
 
Bewal Express said:
SSA is struggling for rhythm and goes on the defensive too quickly. I dread it when he comes round the wicket because bar the slower ball, it has no thought or planning behind it
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I've noticed that he isn't leaning properly while delivering the ball.

It's possible that he has some back issues and he is carrying with it.
 
SSA is judged way way too harshly by fans. Probably the result of the lofty standards ge himself set.
 
I think Shaheen has bowled nicely in the first world cup match. He needs to be on the top of his game if Pakistan has to reach the KO stage.
 
Cricket Warrior said:
I've noticed that he isn't leaning properly while delivering the ball.

It's possible that he has some back issues and he is carrying with it.
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If look back at the T20 WC, he struggled, but due to sheer desire he produced a performance or 2. He bowled poorly against Ind in the Asia, lines were poor and took too long to sum up the help available from the conditions.
 
Pace completely gone. I was hoping against it but I’m convinced he’s injured.
 
Razzaq made an interesting comment regarding SSA. He mentioned that SSA has to realize that he is not going to find favorable conditions on these pitches all the time, he has to have a Plan B and C if the pitches are not aiding swing, seam. He has to look to at least contain runs, bowl to his field and then see if he can get wickets by building pressure. He has to put aside his ego i.e. if he fails to get a wicket in the opening over as these conditions are not conducive to bowlers one bit.
 
If the bowl doesn't swing, he needs to bowl the hard length on off stump. Instead, he goes around the wicket too quickly and except the slower, which he has used with some success, its pretty dire. Back to basics
 
Shaheen hasn’t got an out-swinger, his bouncers aren’t anything to write home about out and he has a tendency to get smashed at the death.

His only strategy is to use his predictable in-swingers to take a wicket or two with the new ball. He offers very little otherwise. Extremely overrated bowler who still has a long way to go before he can be called the best in the world.
 
get the feeling shaheen is sand bagging, this could potentially and optimistically be 11 odis on the trot for him, and if that's the case given naseem is already gone, and the only back up is wasim jr, perhaps management have told him to ease into it.

his pace does not look great, think fastest was 87 today, but mostly low 80s. if the swing is deserting him he should pull his length back and bowl that test match corridor rather than pitching it way up, bcz that's getting pummelled in these conditions.

still, peak shaheen is very difficult with the new ball, and if or when he does click he'll put pak at a massive advantage.
 
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Looks like shaheen shah afridi is not bowling to his full potential. His pace has declined considerably after recovering from that injury. Or is he still carrying that injury ?
 
BouncerGuy said:
View attachment 137445
Looks like shaheen shah afridi is not bowling to his full potential. His pace has declined considerably after recovering from that injury. Or is he still carrying that injury ?
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His pace was back around the Asia Cup and in the leagues before that. He was in the mid 140s occasionally. Maybe he's gotten injured again.
 
He needs a break. He is awful. Not ordinary but absolutely awful. Nobody cares what his speed is or his injury or rehabilitation. He just needs to sit out and sort it out.

Even waqar said he’s been bowling pies (for a while). The problem isn’t just Afridi it’s the combination of Afridi and Shadab. At 8 rpo that’s at least 150 runs gifted to the opposition if they bowl their quota of 9-10 overs. Then the problem increases if you have loose bowling from the others.

So basically 25 overs are being milked right now at about 8 runs an over. That’s absolutely unaffordable for any team.
 
His knee was heavily tapped yesterday. Plus Rashid was saying he injured his bowling finger or something. So is definitely carrying something and being the leader of the attack have to play
 
Marooned said:
SSA is judged way way too harshly by fans. Probably the result of the lofty standards ge himself set.
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They all seem to forget he was our best bowler in the 2019 WC, 2021 WT20 and the 2022 WT20. He was remarkable in the latter considering how unfit he was.

He's been poorly managed. Contrast the way Pakistan have handled his injury and how India have managed Bumrah despite being so injury prone. He should never have played in last year's WT20 and PCB shouldn't have let him play in the PSL as well. He needed at least a 6 month rest.
 
topspin said:
They all seem to forget he was our best bowler in the 2019 WC, 2021 WT20 and the 2022 WT20. He was remarkable in the latter considering how unfit he was.

He's been poorly managed. Contrast the way Pakistan have handled his injury and how India have managed Bumrah despite being so injury prone. He should never have played in last year's WT20 and PCB shouldn't have let him play in the PSL as well. He needed at least a 6 month rest.
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This is what happens when captain clueless plays you in every match against mighty Nepal, Mongolia, Bhutan, Maldives. Naseem is already down, Shaheen is about to & Rauf also seems to have lose that usual venom. I blame these guys also, they are equally as selfish as their captain, all for the sake of some cheap statpadding. Nobody in this team wants to let go any opportunity of minnow bashing. That's not how you breed a champion unit.
 
topspin said:
They all seem to forget he was our best bowler in the 2019 WC, 2021 WT20 and the 2022 WT20. He was remarkable in the latter considering how unfit he was.

He's been poorly managed. Contrast the way Pakistan have handled his injury and how India have managed Bumrah despite being so injury prone. He should never have played in last year's WT20 and PCB shouldn't have let him play in the PSL as well. He needed at least a 6 month rest.
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Completely agree. Rushing him for the wt20 was a huge huge mistake. I still remember the initial timeline for Shaheen's recovery was to be some 4-6 months. Then within 2 months he was declared fit when a lot of experts expressed strong scepticism. It just wasn't possible. Iirc the doctor treating him didn't say he was fully fit but something along the lines that he can take the field. Then desperate Rambo came up with his usual cringe he's 110% fit, etc. Pakistan took a crazy gamble on their best player. No long term vision, no nothing. Madness.
 
Waqar Younis speaking on Star Sports

"Pakistan's success has come when Shaheen really picks up early wickets and over the years, he's done it many times and, uh, and he's got capacity, capability, but at the moment he's trying too hard. He's just falling all over the place, you know, bowling on the pads, outside the off stump he's tried around the wicket over the wicket, nothing really worked for him, and I'm sure he will even sit back with Morne Morkel,"

"And they'll probably work out what is going wrong. I think there might be, uh, some action problem. What if he's carrying any niggle or anything? If he can fix this issue and with that left arm ball coming in, you know, early doors, You know, against India, we'll be needing his services at the most because he has done it, uh, against India a few matches previously," he added.
 
topspin said:
They all seem to forget he was our best bowler in the 2019 WC, 2021 WT20 and the 2022 WT20. He was remarkable in the latter considering how unfit he was.

He's been poorly managed. Contrast the way Pakistan have handled his injury and how India have managed Bumrah despite being so injury prone. He should never have played in last year's WT20 and PCB shouldn't have let him play in the PSL as well. He needed at least a 6 month rest.
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Bumrah also doesnt play every circus leauge in the world. SSA is also to blame, he plays non stop cricket and lots of T20 cricket.
 
pakistani pride said:
Bumrah also doesnt play every circus leauge in the world. SSA is also to blame, he plays non stop cricket and lots of T20 cricket.
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VForVendetta said:
This is what happens when captain clueless plays you in every match against mighty Nepal, Mongolia, Bhutan, Maldives. Naseem is already down, Shaheen is about to & Rauf also seems to have lose that usual venom. I blame these guys also, they are equally as selfish as their captain, all for the sake of some cheap statpadding. Nobody in this team wants to let go any opportunity of minnow bashing. That's not how you breed a champion unit.
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Marooned said:
Completely agree. Rushing him for the wt20 was a huge huge mistake. I still remember the initial timeline for Shaheen's recovery was to be some 4-6 months. Then within 2 months he was declared fit when a lot of experts expressed strong scepticism. It just wasn't possible. Iirc the doctor treating him didn't say he was fully fit but something along the lines that he can take the field. Then desperate Rambo came up with his usual cringe he's 110% fit, etc. Pakistan took a crazy gamble on their best player. No long term vision, no nothing. Madness.
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Indeed, SSA also has himself to blame. They are going to want to play for 3 reasons. More games means more money. More games against minnows and weaker teams offer a great chance to enhance their stats. Also, there is the insecurity factor. They get insecure if someone who takes their place in the side performs because they don't feel comfortable when there's competition.

This is why for any injury which results in a lengthy absence, the PCB should enforce a long-term absence until there is sufficient medical evidence to support their return to training before they're softly introduced back into the team. Unfortunately, the PCB is also very much to blame in all this because they want their best team always playing so they can market and hype up their players because they're also chasing viewership to enhance their earnings from sponsorship and TV rights.

Where Pakistan cricket lags behind all the major sides is the lack of rotation and experimentation with its playing XI. As VForVendetta has rightly pointed out, they play their best team even against non-test playing nations such as Nepal.
 
ElRaja said:
get the feeling shaheen is sand bagging, this could potentially and optimistically be 11 odis on the trot for him, and if that's the case given naseem is already gone, and the only back up is wasim jr, perhaps management have told him to ease into it.

his pace does not look great, think fastest was 87 today, but mostly low 80s. if the swing is deserting him he should pull his length back and bowl that test match corridor rather than pitching it way up, bcz that's getting pummelled in these conditions.

still, peak shaheen is very difficult with the new ball, and if or when he does click he'll put pak at a massive advantage.
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Don't think that's the case. He has elbow and knee issues and he's not the same bowler he was in 2021.

At his current pace, he doesn't know how to bowl. Too used to swinging it at pace and bowling full.

The lack of pace is real and he's not really holding back.
 
This is the right time for Shaheen to prove his worth to the opponents.

If he manages to generate some early swing it could prove extremely challenging for the Indian batsmen to get the rhythm.
 
Cricket Warrior said:
This is the right time for Shaheen to prove his worth to the opponents.

If he manages to generate some early swing it could prove extremely challenging for the Indian batsmen to get the rhythm.
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His form has been a big concern recently. He seems to be a bit lost, bowling a lot of wides, with no consistent line and length. Today's match will prove his worth if he can bring his A-game in the most important game in recent times.
 
Rohit and Gill will take care of him and his full blooded inswingers in yorker length. He doesn't have any other weapons
 
He clearly has some issues he is not the same bowler as he was before. Ramiz Raja said he is suffering from finger injury as he is unable to hold ball properly but his pace issue might not be due to finger injury.

Hopefully he gets fit soon he is crucial for Pakistan.
 
viking2559 said:
He clearly has some issues he is not the same bowler as he was before. Ramiz Raja said he is suffering from finger injury as he is unable to hold ball properly but his pace issue might not be due to finger injury.

Hopefully he gets fit soon he is crucial for Pakistan.
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Why is he playing then?
 
jnaveen1980 said:
Why is he playing then?
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The issue is that most of our fast bowling back ups also have small injuries they’re recovering from right now. If Naseem Shah was fully healthy, the chances of Shaheen Shah getting rest would’ve been higher but you can’t replace both your main strikes bowlers right before a major tournament.
 
Bowling poorly. Poor control and poor thought process. Attack the off stump with a test length. Make them feel for the ball.
 
He’s been average since his injury against SL in that test series. Don’t think he’s been the same bowler since.
 
Age fudging catching up

A guy who is claiming to be 23 yrs old, pace has dropped and looks washed up.

But who cares when likes of sukroos like hasan ali a certified big match bottler get called up back in the side after 1 or 2 yrs to get their regular phainta and show us why they were kicked out in first place.
 
Don't the injury rubbish. Indians underestimated him in 2021 and since then they have done their homework on him knowing that all he has is the inswinger, there is no out swinger or bouncer and he will spray the ball around when attacked.
 
Afridi went from being the best fast bowler a year ago to being finished. I’m sorry to say this but Afridi is finished guys and I blame PCB board for rushing him back from injury in the injury he got in the t20 World Cup and he has unfortunately turned into a 80mph trundler. He hasn’t even been able to bowl one inswinging Yorker in his first over which he normally does simply because he has lost his pace by 10kph which renders him lifeless and incompetent bowler. Amir is a big miss said it all along he’s 10x better than afridi as he delivered for pakistan on the biggest stage at afridi age whereas afridi is finished at age of 23 lol
 
Give him time.

Even if he isn't 23 he isnt 30 either.

He will grow and become better.

But he is no Wasim Akram.
 
Why is no one talking about this guy. Only a year ago he was hitting his stride bowling searing inswinging Yorkers. And since the rushed injury comeback he looks a shadow of the bower he once was.

Always on the cusp of taking a beating. And he’s lost his pace is the main concern.

Afridi is literally trundling in at 80 mph bowling pies

Sad to see one of our main bower finished at 23. Yes I’m saying this and it’s not an over-reaction.

Pakistan will sadly need to move on from this guy if this carries on any longer his performances have been quite trash this World Cup for someone who should be dominating this world cup
 
He has glory ball syndrome like most Pak bowlers have. He just wants to take a wicket and give that standing pose. He has some skills. He has height. But bowling intelligence has scope for improvement. Still the best Pak fast bowler.
 
jnaveen1980 said:
He has glory ball syndrome like most Pak bowlers have. He just wants to take a wicket and give that standing pose. He has some skills. He has height. But bowling intelligence has scope for improvement. Still the best Pak fast bowler.
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All he does is try and swing the ball back in every ball and the batters know this.
 
jnaveen1980 said:
He has glory ball syndrome like most Pak bowlers have. He just wants to take a wicket and give that standing pose. He has some skills. He has height. But bowling intelligence has scope for improvement. Still the best Pak fast bowler.
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Gambhir mentioned the same thing, he is very one dimensional with his full blooded inswingers to the right hander approach, he can't seam, swing the ball away from the right hander from the same spot and he has a very poor bouncer which is inexcusable for a tall guy. Indians have done their homework on him and Shaheen has no other answer right now
 
He absolutely has to pick wickets with the new ball in this World Cup for Pakistan to have a shot at the semis.

Has to be more aggressive and smart.
 
Savak said:
Gambhir mentioned the same thing, he is very one dimensional with his full blooded inswingers to the right hander approach, he can't seam, swing the ball away from the right hander from the same spot and he has a very poor bouncer which is inexcusable for a tall guy. Indians have done their homework on him and Shaheen has no other answer right now
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Yeah I don't get how he's awful at bouncers? Doesn't make sense.
 
Devadwal said:
He is class bowler but I don't think he is Full fit
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Read my post he’s sadly done finished. Need to drop him and bring Amir back. Amir is 10x the bowler this guy is he’s won a t20 World Cup and icc champions trophy a legend. They bowling at the same pace so I rather take Amir all day long at this stage
 
Rana said:
He became too big for his boots
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Exactly this… the Indian pacers were both bowling 89 and 90mph on this pitch hence why they took wickets whereas our main strike bowler trundled in and bowled 80mph thunderbolts.. he’s finished trust me need to open with Ihsanullah and naseem once they fit and bring back Amir simple
 
Honestly if I was a selector I’d be on the phone to Amir and flying him in to replace afridi as atleast Amir is feared in world cricket and still a canny bower might just save Paksitan’s face and World Cup. No time for egos it’s the World Cup biggest event
 
He's was bowling well before the start of the World Cup but seems to have lost a bit of pace and swing.
Hassan Ali was swinging the ball more and was looking more threatening with better line and lengths.
 
Ali T said:
He's was bowling well before the start of the World Cup but seems to have lost a bit of pace and swing.
Hassan Ali was swinging the ball more and was looking more threatening with better line and lengths.
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Exactly both hasan Ali and afridi were trundling in at 80 mph whereas bumrah and siraj were bowling 90mph thunderbolts with accuracy and fire. The afridi that used to bowl at 88mph is sadly finished been watching his pace for a whole year he’s been destroyed by the incompetent PCB for rushing him back and playing him in every league around the world where his body has broken down and won’t recover and he’s only 23. Soo sad and upsetting to see.
 
Waiting for @topspin to come and tell me how Shaheen is not overrated and is the greatest Pakistani bowler in the last 5 years. And slip in a Misbah reference to top it off.
 
shariqnoor said:
Waiting for @topspin to come and tell me how Shaheen is not overrated and is the greatest Pakistani bowler in the last 5 years. And slip in a Misbah reference to top it off.
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He just doesn’t put the work in and was rushed back hence why he is a shadow of himself and has been since his injury he’s sadly finished and don’t see him recovering
 
SSA has failed to understand that batsman are playing for his inswing and waiting for it. Each match it takes him 2 or more overs to realise the line and then the length is wrong. He should bowl more a test length and get the ball to move away as the batsman feel for the ball. Not good enough
 
hassan918 said:
He is still one of the best with the new ball and in death as well but in middle overs he doesn't seem that lethal.
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Bro admit it he’s finished his only weapon he had the inswinging Yorker he bowed at pace in his first over every game and got a wicket with he can’t bowl anymore due to his 80 mph pies.

I don’t get even if the batsmen was ready for that inswinging Yorker if you bowl it at pace it will get you a wicket but he’s lost that and unfortunately will get hammered against any half decent batsmen
 
JAV12341 said:
Bro admit it he’s finished his only weapon he had the inswinging Yorker he bowed at pace in his first over every game and got a wicket with he can’t bowl anymore due to his 80 mph pies.

I don’t get even if the batsmen was ready for that inswinging Yorker if you bowl it at pace it will get you a wicket but he’s lost that and unfortunately will get hammered against any half decent batsmen
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Funny how he was trying to do the same today. Watch his first two balls to Sharma. Obviously world class batsmen don't make the same mistake over and over again. Sharma was ready for it.

He is an Afridi after all, keep doing the same thing and expect different result. His father-in-law also used to close his eyes and swing the bat hoping to hit a six, 9/10 he would just sky it.
 
shariqnoor said:
Waiting for @topspin to come and tell me how Shaheen is not overrated and is the greatest Pakistani bowler in the last 5 years. And slip in a Misbah reference to top it off.
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You're misguided but that's expected because your reading of the game isn't credible in the slightest, as evident by "economy rates in ODIs are meaningless" and also by how highly you rate Imam.

But as you're so misguided, I'm happy to help you work out where you've gone if you could answer the following questions:

1. Did Shaheen bowl well in the last 3 x ICC tournaments (2019 WC, 2021 and 2022 WT20s)?
2. Who was Pakistan's best bowler in the last 3 x ICC tournaments (2019 WC, 2021 and 2022 WT20s)?
3. During the last WT20, did Shaheen look anywhere near 100% fit?
4. Has Shaheen been struggling for injuries and fitness over the last 12 months?
5. Does Shaheen look 100% fit during this WC?

Look let's cut out the crap. I know exactly where your criticism of Shaheen stems from and it has nothing to do with his performances.
 
Dr_Bassim said:
You know things are bad when your team crashes to 191 all out on a flatbed of Ahmedabad and people take it out on a 23 year old bowler for not bowling magical deliveries to win the match.
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Apparently Shaheen told journalists yesterday that he will take a photo with them after taking a 5fer against India.

He’s clearly spending too much time with his sassur jee
 
If u r unable to perform at your best in major events then u r not living up to the reputation of being the top fast bowler.

Today was the day when your team needed you to shine like a champion but you couldn't meet the expectations.
 
Ravi shastri on shaheen afridia today;

He is a good bowler, he can claim a wicket with the new ball. But you have to admit it, if Naseem Shah is not playing and the quality of Pakistan’s spin bowling is like this, then Shaheen Shah Afridi koi Wasim Akram nai hai! Acche bowler hai. Lekin itna bhi jyaada chadane ka koi zaroorat nahi hai. Jab hai theek thak, toh bolna chahiye woh theek thaak hai. Chadha ke nahin bithana chahiye ki bohot zabardast hai. Yeh nahi hai! Yeh maan na padega. (Shaheen is not Wasim Akram. He’s a good bowler, but there is no need for us to hype him so highly as well. If a player is simply a good player, we should restrict our praise to saying he is a good player. He’s not a great player, we need to admit that),” Shastri said pulling no punches.
 
He is a pretty good bowler and that's about it. He doesn't have many variations and pace is a joke at this level for a premier bowler. He also might be fudging his ages he seems to have aged a lot and struggling to improve. You expect a genuine 22/23 year Olds to have lots of strength and eagerness to improve. He seems to have already peaked like those white girls in high school
 
Bit harsh from ravi imo.

Shaheen was the Lone ranger trying ti carry the team

Bumrah had kuldeep siraj bowling well in tandem.

How is Cummins faring ?

He has hazlewood and starc to support him


How did Mark wood do vs nz?
 
Once the WC is over, Shaheen should take some serious time off from the game, rest up and fix all niggles and come back 100% ready and fresh like India did with Bhumra even if it means taking 6 months off from the game.
 
I remember in that Khi test match against Australia where Shaheen was getting reverse swing with the old ball and he bowled a 5-6 over spell where he kept running in and kept bowling the reverse swinging inswinging yorker to Usman Khawaja who was batting on 150 not out ball after ball. Waqar was getting very frustrated with Shaheen for wasting his energy and stated that Shaheen needed to learn the art of setting up a batsman and not being predictable i.e. move a few deliveries away from the batsman, bowl just short of a good length, bowl the odd bouncer, put the batsman on the backfoot and then bowl at inswinger as a surprise delivery.

Its the same story with the new ball, Rohit, Gill and Kohli are very well prepared with their footwork, stance against Shaheen's full blooded inswinging yorker, its embarrasing to see Shaheen not really having any other weapon up his sleeve. He has to look at how Wasim Akram used to set up batters, how he could make the ball move in two different directions inspite of the ball pitching on the same spot.
 
Savak said:
Once the WC is over, Shaheen should take some serious time off from the game, rest up and fix all niggles and come back 100% ready and fresh like India did with Bhumra even if it means taking 6 months off from the game.
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Pakistani players never like to take time off. Even if their places are 100% secure. It may be that they want to have as much screen time as possible.
 
All Shaheen, Haris, shadab starting to regressed as soon as they got married
 
Cricketing smarts is what missing. Shaheen is very young. If Boult can massively expand his bowling repertoire at this age Shaheen can do as well. Boult is a much improved death bowler these days with his subtle change of pace. At this point shaheen focuses on getting batsman out lbw or bowled. It is just not possible in every match
 
Starc or SSA , Starc
Bumrah or SSA , Bumrah
Ngidi or SSA, Ngidi
Wood or SSA, Wood

SSA is good but his contemporaries are excellent
 
He has not been the same bowler since his injury. Bowls very ordinarily, Parveen Kumar's pace with no control. He is a perfect hit me bowler right now.
 
He has also been very pre occupied with being Shahid Afridis son in law. I doubt he has been focusing on his game as much
 
shah_1 said:
He has not been the same bowler since his injury. Bowls very ordinarily, Parveen Kumar's pace with no control. He is a perfect hit me bowler right now.
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And PCB have not let him recover. He should not have played in the world t20.

Look at how BCCI handled Bumrah’s injury Vs how PCB handled Shaheen.

Bumrah looks fully recovered like he never left.

Shaheen looks like he still hasn’t recovered even though it’s been a year.
 
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